Beach closings for goose hunt delayed

The state has delayed a special hunting season on geese at the beach at Caesar Creek State Park and eight other parks in southern Ohio until after Labor Day.

The state has delayed a special hunting season on geese at the beach at Caesar Creek State Park and eight other parks in southern Ohio until after Labor Day.

The two-week early season, during which hunters reduce the population of migrant Canada geese at select state park beaches, was to begin Monday, the Labor Day holiday.

Nathan Steiner, park manager for Caesar Creek and Cowan Lake state parks, said on Tuesday, “That was a mistake on our part. We were trying to think quickly and out of the box.”

State officials said Ohio began the beach hunting program after exhausting alternative remedies to manage the geese, which live year-round at the parks, rather than migrating. Coyote decoys, specially trained dogs and noise-making devices all failed to shoo away the growing flocks, Hoffer said.